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NSA Undermining Mathematical Formulas, Says Frenkel

Writing in Slate, UC Berkeley mathematician Edward Frenkel argues that the National Security Agency has compromised a "time-honored and essential principle of freedom of mathematical information."

Frenkel elaborates on allegations that the NSA knowingly advocated encryption methods prone to attack and insists that, in light of these revelations, mathematicians need to engage:

Members of my community must initiate a serious discussion about our role in this brave new world. We need to find mechanisms to protect the freedom of mathematical knowledge that we love and cherish. And we have to help the public understand both the awesome power of math and the serious consequences that await all of us if that power is misused.